Naughty or Nice
by Ellie White
Summary: Community Service isn't only for criminals. One-shot written for the abc las contest. Prompt: Tell a story centered around a December holiday. Warning: Implied swear word.


Naughty or Nice

Warning: Implied swear word.

* * *

Mandatory Community Service.

These three little words that normally had criminals shuddering in fear now sent simultaneous groans around the room from the nauseous feeling that invaded each stomach of New York's finest.

The precinct chose a different charity event or activity to volunteer its employees each year, but this one had Detectives Ryan and Esposito quirking a disbelieving eyebrow at the attire which was handed to them, personally with a smirk, by Captain Montgomery.

Detective Kate Beckett, who had watched them from her desk across the room, shook her head, chuckling to herself. She gathered up the last of her paperwork and grabbed her coat, heading to Montgomery's Office.

"Sir?" she asked while knocking.

"Beckett." He set his pen down and leaned back in his chair. "Heading out for the night?"

She nodded and handed him the folder in her hand.

"Thank you," he said, setting it down on his desk and folding his hands on top of it. "You know, the boys are going to want to bail out on this evening. Now, I've seen their costumes. I don't blame them for wanting to hook it, but the department needs the good publicity. I need you to make sure they show up and perform their assigned duty."

"No problem, Sir."

He smiled. "Merry Christmas, Kate."

She stopped short of closing the door and smiled back at him. "Merry Christmas, Roy."

Thirty minutes later, Beckett stepped off of the elevator, onto the second floor and into Mercy General's Pediatric Department.

Following the handy directional signs, she heard familiar voices a couple of doors down from the main lounge. The window was covered, so she knocked.

"Who is it?" came Esposito's voice on the other side.

"N.Y.P.D.," she replied.

"Don't laugh," he warned her.

The door opened to reveal a full grown man in a very child-like outfit.

Her hand flew up to her face to cover her uncontrollable grin. It spread wider at the sight of Ryan who approached behind him in the same green shirt and pants, topped with curly green shoe covers and a green felt hat. They would've reminded her of Peter Pan, if it hadn't been for the jingle bells that peppered their outfits.

"Well," she smiled wildly, "you two look awfully…festive, don't you?" She pulled out her phone.

"Who're you callin'?" Ryan asked nonchalantly.

"No one," she replied as she held it up to capture a picture of their faces along with their outfits and attaching it to a text message. She typed "Jingle bells… here's some elves. Just think: if you'd been a real cop, you'd look like this right now" and sent it to Castle. She was sure that even though he wasn't with them, he'd enjoy the picture nonetheless.

Esposito nodded to Ryan and turned around to grab a small bundle. As Beckett closed her phone and pushed it back into her pocket, a flash of cherry red hit her in the chest.

"What's this?" she asked, grabbing it before it hit the ground and unraveling it.

"Karma," the two guys snickered, walking out the door.

Unfolding the fabric, she was shocked to discover a thigh-length, long sleeved red dress trimmed in faux white fur. Pinned to the sleeve was a matching Santa hat and fluffy white shoe covers that matched the trim.

She growled. "Son of a-"

Kate, dressed in red and white from head-to-toe, snuck out of the dressing room and opened the door to the large lounge room where the kids were now lined up against the wall, waiting to sit on the lap of the poor sucker the department talked into playing Santa. Standing on both sides of the jolly man was Esposito and Ryan. Ryan grinned and walked off of the stage, handing her a basket of candy canes.

"Here you go, Mrs. C," he grinned impishly.

She returned it with an icy one of her own. "One word of this to Castle and I tell the rest of the precinct about you creeping around the lingerie department at Macy's."

The smile dropped from his face. "I was shopping for a gift for Jenny!"

"They don't have to know that."

"You wouldn't!"

She angled her face into his in an intimidating manner. "Try me, Honey Milk."

"When are you people going to let that go?" he grumbled, walking back onto the stage.

Victoriously, she shook her head in amusement and made her way up to the stage and stood next to her "husband".

One by one, little boys and girls sat on the lap of their childhood fantasy and expressed their wishes for everything from toys to hopes for friends and family. After each wish, she handed them a candy cane, wished them a "Merry Christmas!" and posed for a picture with them.

Just as the last child had climbed off of Santa's lap, the photographer asked for a staff picture for the Police department. With an elf on each side, Santa patted his leg for Beckett to sit. She looked at him suspiciously at first, but shrugged and sat down on his left leg. After the shot was taken, Kate's phone went off. Reaching into the sewn-in front pocket of her dress, she pulled out her cell to discover a text from Castle. It was a picture of her in the dress she was currently wearing along with the words, "Oh, what an extraordinary wife you portray!"

Before she could react, two white gloved hands grabbed her around the waist and drew her into the man whose lap she was sitting on. She turned to him in shock. "Castle?"

"I took a picture of you so Santa would know what I want for Christmas." He grinned. "Do you think he'll get it?"

"What kind of boy have you been this year? I could make sure to put in a good word for you."

"Nice." He winked at her.

She snorted, pulling his beard away from his mouth and passionately kissed him. "Naughty."

"You've no idea."


End file.
